How do you default the Windows 10 Explorer view to `Details` when looking at search results?

When I do a search in Windows Explorer, it always defaults to the following useless view (ok, so useless to me anyway) called Content.

How does one make it always do Details view by default?

1 Answer

You need some registry entries thaat don't exist by default to set the various SearchResults templates to Details view. This modification can be applied machine-wide or per-user and the registry entries can be created by merging a .reg file or kby PowerShell script. The machine-wide PowerShell edit must be run from an Administrative PowerShell console. The .reg files can be saved with any text editor & then right-clciked & merged.

Machine-wide PowerShell (Admin)

(gci 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FolderTypes' | ?{(gp $_.PSPath).CanonicalName -match '\.S'}).PSChildname | %{ $SRPath = "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\$_" new-item -Path $SRPath New-ItemProperty -Path $SRPath -Name 'Mode' -Value 4 }

Per-User PowerShell

(gci 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FolderTypes' | ?{(gp $_.PSPath).CanonicalName -match '\.S'}).PSChildname | %{ $SRPath = "HKCU:\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\$_" new-item -Path $SRPath New-ItemProperty -Path $SRPath -Name 'Mode' -Value 4 }

Machine-Wide .reg file

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{20338b7b-531c-4aad-8011-f5b3db2123ec}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{36011842-dccc-40fe-aa3d-6177ea401788}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{3D1D4EA2-1D8C-418a-BFF8-F18370157B55}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{4dcafe13-e6a7-4c28-be02-ca8c2126280d}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{503a4e73-1734-441a-8eab-01b3f3861156}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{59BD6DD1-5CEC-4d7e-9AD2-ECC64154418D}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{71689ac1-cc88-45d0-8a22-2943c3e7dfb3}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{7fde1a1e-8b31-49a5-93b8-6be14cfa4943}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{921C636D-9FC8-40d7-899E-0845DCD03010}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{e053a11a-dced-4515-8c4e-d51ba917517b}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{ea25fbd7-3bf7-409e-b97f-3352240903f4}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004

Per-User .reg File

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{20338b7b-531c-4aad-8011-f5b3db2123ec}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{36011842-dccc-40fe-aa3d-6177ea401788}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{3D1D4EA2-1D8C-418a-BFF8-F18370157B55}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{4dcafe13-e6a7-4c28-be02-ca8c2126280d}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{503a4e73-1734-441a-8eab-01b3f3861156}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{59BD6DD1-5CEC-4d7e-9AD2-ECC64154418D}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{71689ac1-cc88-45d0-8a22-2943c3e7dfb3}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{7fde1a1e-8b31-49a5-93b8-6be14cfa4943}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{921C636D-9FC8-40d7-899E-0845DCD03010}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{e053a11a-dced-4515-8c4e-d51ba917517b}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\Local Settings\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Shell\Bags\AllFolders\Shell\{ea25fbd7-3bf7-409e-b97f-3352240903f4}]
"Mode"=dword:00000004

What are all those different valuses?

gci 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FolderTypes' |
>> ?{(gp $_.PSPath).CanonicalName -match '\.S'} |
>> select PSCHildname, @{N='Name';E={(gp $_.PSPath).CanonicalName}}
PSChildName Name
----------- ----
{20338b7b-531c-4aad-8011-f5b3db2123ec} Contacts.SearchResults
{36011842-dccc-40fe-aa3d-6177ea401788} Documents.SearchResults
{3D1D4EA2-1D8C-418a-BFF8-F18370157B55} OtherUsers.SearchResults
{4dcafe13-e6a7-4c28-be02-ca8c2126280d} Pictures.SearchResults
{503a4e73-1734-441a-8eab-01b3f3861156} Communications.SearchResults
{59BD6DD1-5CEC-4d7e-9AD2-ECC64154418D} UsersLibraries.SearchResults
{71689ac1-cc88-45d0-8a22-2943c3e7dfb3} Music.SearchResults
{7fde1a1e-8b31-49a5-93b8-6be14cfa4943} Generic.SearchResults
{921C636D-9FC8-40d7-899E-0845DCD03010} PublishedItems.SearchResults
{e053a11a-dced-4515-8c4e-d51ba917517b} UserFiles.SearchResults
{ea25fbd7-3bf7-409e-b97f-3352240903f4} Videos.SearchResults